oh, this is gonna be good. I thought that food would be the first big bump into international trade, but it turns out it will start with semiconductors.
The golden age of trade is over. With global warming and the lack of resources looming we are entering a slow slide toward chaos. I can't find a better name. The less resources you will need the better you boat will float. (Europe has almost no mineral resources)
WHAT ARE THEY USED FOR?
The metals are used in high-speed computer chips and in the defence and renewable energy sectors. Germanium is key to fibre optic cables and also used in high-speed computer chips and plastics as well as infrared radiation. The metal and its oxides are used in military applications like night-vision devices as well as satellite imagery sensors. It is also important for low-carbon technologies such as solar cells.
Semiconductor wafers made with gallium arsenide rather than silicon can operate at higher frequencies and are heat resistant, according to U.S. company Wafer World.
They also produce less noise than silicon devices, especially at high operating frequencies, making them useful in radars and radio communication devices, satellites and LEDs, Wafer World says.
from what the article says, it will be a licensing requirement issued by the PRC. How they enforce it will be interesting. There is speculation that they might just block suppliers of components for US defense companies and exclude civillian applications. This would severely slow down GaAs and GaN radars, advanced components for ships, planes, thaad, etc. but wouldnt necessarily upend global supply chains for solar panels or the next iPhone.
SS: In an escalation of the chip trade war going on between the US and China, the PRC has issued limits and new regulations on the exports of specific metals used in chip manufacturing and other tech sectors. China supplies a majority of the global supply of gallium - up to 94%. While it is unclear to what extent Beijing will reduce exports, it is clear that that the trade conflict will only continue to escalate. These moves come amidst a global effort to reduce strategic vulnerabilities in their supply chains.
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